The accompanying charts provide a graphic overview of how U.S. sunflower seed production and value have trended over the past few decades. From the tiny crops of the ’60s . . . through the boom years of the latter ’70s . . . to the tough times of the mid-’80s . . . and now into the more-mature ’90s, sunflower, like all of U.S. agriculture, has experienced its share of ups and downs in terms of production levels and prices. Some of the highs and lows of recent decades include:

The record year for overall production — 1979, with its 7.3 billion pounds of seed.

The record year (since 1977) in terms of average price received by farmers — 1983, with its level of $287 per metric ton, or about 13 cents per pound. (The low year was 1986 — when farmers received only about seven cents.)

The top average yield — 1987’s excellent 1,469 pounds per acre (with the lowest average yield since 1967 being 902 pounds back in 1970).